Budget math

In case you didn’t know, the proverbial sky is falling (we’re talking, of course, about the budget deficit), and no one seems to have a complete answer to the mess. On July 1, it will be a $576 million mess, for the record.

On Tuesday, the board voted to move forward with a June special election that would ask voters to approve tax increases; then, today, the mayor’s office gave an update on their plans to close the gap. Our takeaway: none of the proposals are alone enough.

Let’s start with the plan from Mayor Gavin Newsom’s office: They’ve already shaved $115 off next year’s deficit, and are asking for another $144 million in cuts from city departments. Plus, they plan to get $49 million in cash from the city’s rainy day fund. If they can talk labor into giving up wage increases this year and next (which so far hasn’t happened) they’ll get another $90 million lopped off the figure — meaning there’s still a $117 million gap. (Which could increase or decrease, depending on what happens in Sacramento.)

On to the special election: If all of the tax measures introduced this week were to go on that ballot and win — a sales tax increase, a new gross receipts tax and a vehicle license fee — the city could get around $135 million, according to rough estimates. But the board doesn’t want all the department cuts to go through; it’s not clear whether voters will buy the tax increases; and the vehicle license fee is contingent on state legislation. Plus, an election will cost around $3.5 million.